The Christmas Exhibition
by The BritCrit
Summary: AU. An alternate ending to the Mark/Juliet Subplot


_Note: It's Valentine's Day today, and I can't think of a better time to put up a "Love Actually" Fanfic._

 _This is my attempt at putting a new twist on the Mark-Juliet subplot. Though I can see why people find it a touch creepy, I think that the concept is interesting. I wanted to change the ending of the subplot to better deliver the following message - if you can't express your feelings directly to someone, find a positive outlet for them in the creative arts_

 _The Scene with Mark and Mia is based on a deleted scene from the movie. The Tour Guide's dialogue is taken from the Dr. Who Episode "Vincent and The Doctor", written by "Love Actually" writer and director Richard Curtis. The concept and description are entirely my own creation._

 _This is my first fanfic, though I have reviewed several. Please be constructive in your criticism._

* * *

"It's a…self-preservation…thing you know…"

With these words, Mark walked out of the house, not wanting Juliet to see the look on his face. Sadness, anger, confusion and almost every negative emotion he tried to conceal in front of her and Peter surfaced in full force as he zipped up his jumper and stormed aimlessly through the streets of London.

Juliet knew! Mark had always been infatuated with her, but he had never been willing to show it. When Peter had started to go out with her, Mark had pretended not to pay attention. He loved Juliet, but he felt that his friendship with Peter was more valuable – he didn't want to endanger it over his feelings for the new bride. As a result, he had done everything to keep his feelings a secret. Whenever Juliet tried to engage him in a conversation, he tried to cut her off, telling her he was busy and wanted to be left alone– anything to keep her from noticing the extent of his infatuation. Whenever Peter talked about his new bride, Mark would try and change the subject as quickly as possible to any of the numerous common interests the two shared. After a while, Mark began to believe that he had succeeded in concealing his feelings about Juliet, and assumed that she and Peter knew nothing about his inner turmoil.

But this suppression of his thoughts and feelings was all in vain. Juliet had seen the wedding video – she now knew what he felt about her. He knew Juliet would keep the video secret. Whenever he saw her with Peter, Mark knew that Juliet loved him as much as he loved her. If Peter found out that Mark had been spying on his beloved, then both the marriage and the friendship would be destroyed. Mark did not want to be responsible for this.

Mark knew only one escape from the destructive thoughts affecting him, and that was the art exhibition his gallery hosted for a week every Christmas. It was not very large, and the artwork was never any good, but Mark enjoyed putting it on. Every year, it would be hired out for a party, with the exhibition starting the following day. The same artwork would be used on both occasions, usually chosen by whoever was organising the office party. Mark always preferred the exhibition. He was usually a loner, and never felt comfortable in the large crowds that are central to any Christmas party. The exhibition was for a smaller group of people. A small number would turn up over its duration, with Peter and Juliet invariably coming to see it on Christmas Eve. When they were present, Mark always tried his best to focus on the show. He would watch as people looked at the artwork, and tried to tell them about it. Recently, this task was becoming more difficult. If it wasn't bad enough trying to conceal his emotions when observing Juliet and Peter becoming increasingly close, the erotic nature of the artwork made the exhibition incredibly uncomfortable. Mark had always been fascinated with art. He loved the way it could be used to make points, express opinions and deliver messages. His favourite art always reflected the mind-set of the person behind it. He remembered going to an art gallery in Paris as a child, and hearing the tour guide discuss Van Gogh.

"Van Gogh was the greatest painter of his generation, "the Tour guide had explained, "And yet he painted with no hope of praise or reward. He transformed the pain of his tormented life into ecstatic beauty."

Seeing the expressive, colourful paintings in front of him, and hearing about Van Gogh's struggles with madness and depression had moved Mark from an early age, and inspired him every time he had created artworks at school. Recently, this creative inspiration had faded, and Mark had decided it was easier to show someone else's art than create his own. He invariably came to regret this decision as soon as the Christmas artwork arrived. The pictures of human anatomy always made him feel ashamed. Whenever people looked at it, Mark always wondered if they saw him as an idiot focused on shock value over artistic quality.

* * *

As Mark arrived at _La Guff_ , he saw a large collection of wrapped canvases and a woman waiting for him. This was his friend Mia.

Mark went to the canvases, preparing to open them, hoping that the artwork inside was high quality. He knew the name of the artist whose works had been chosen by the office, but he did not know anything else. Nonetheless, he knew that Mia was the only audience he would have until the party and the exhibiton. Now was a good time to rehearse his speeches, and treat these mystery works like they were Renaissance masterpieces.

"These humble packages contain our new exhibition. Photographs by none other than the great John Seikert."

"Exciting stuff," replied Mia, "What's the theme?"

"He said Christmas…" Mark answered uncertainly. "Very family sort of thing…"

In spite of his trepidation, John's promotion had made Mark genuinely excited about the Christmas artwork. "Finally, a crowd pleaser!" He told Mia as he went to the largest canvas and tore it open. As the wrapping was removed, he saw a giant picture of a woman's curvy bottom with a red ball wedged inside it.

As Mark took a good look at the painting, he described it to Mia as "Interesting…classic… bleak…fatal…" Like anyone in the art world, she was able to translate those terms as meaning "absolutely awful. How did I end up with this crap?" Nonetheless, Mark's enthusiasm went undimmed. Hopefully he had been sent the wrong artwork by mistake, and the rest of them were the family-friendly pieces he had been looking forward to.

As Mark revealed the rest of the canvases, any excitement was replaced with disappointment. All of them contained pornographic imagery.

* * *

"Actually, they're not funny. They're art".

Mark had spent the past hour trying to respond to the noisy schoolgirls who had turned up at the office party. They had no connection with any of the employees present, but turned up to point and laugh at naked photographs. They came to all of the office parties, and Mark normally ignored them, but today was different.

If Mark had gone to the party to get rid of all the thoughts about Juliet and Peter swirling around in his mind, than it hadn't worked. They dominated his mind, and his desire to express his true feelings became unbearable. However, Mark knew that if he did, he would ruin the happiness of his best friend. This made him feel anxious, and in this state, he was prone to get annoyed at anyone distracting him.

When the party ended, Mark was left alone in the gallery, surrounded by the raunchy images. He had often been disappointed with the quality of the pieces used at the Art Show, but he couldn't bear to display these ones to the general public – the embarrassment would be too great. At this point, two major worries went through Mark's head. The first of these was the need to find an adequate replacement before the Christmas Exhibition started the following evening. The second was how to get his feelings about Juliet off his chest without upsetting her or Peter.

Mark thought about both these issues for a couple of seconds, then had an idea. For the first time in years, he would create his own artwork.

* * *

The new Christmas Exhibition consisted of just one piece of work, so it did not take long to set up. This gave Mark extra time to wait for the visitors.

The guests congregated inside the studio, looking at the white frame projected onto the blank wall. This came from a projector attached to the ceiling. There was also a computer outside the audience's view. Mark had uploaded his artwork onto a PowerPoint, and this would be shown to everyone in the gallery. Mark checked the computer one last time, then went to join the crowd. With a bit of luck, no-one would realise that he was providing the evening's exhibit.

"Good Evening!" Mark shouted, aiming to make his voice heard. "Tonight's Christmas exhibition is going to be a short one. But don't despair. This installation is worth the trip!"

The crowd listened, intrigued, as Mark continued with a speech that felt more genuine than any he had provided in ages.

"We originally had a bunch of nude photos, just like last year, and the year before, but a couple of days ago, an anonymous artist came and provided this piece, which was so good I decided to replace all the usual art and just show you this instead."

"This piece is called "A Christmas Goodbye". I hope you all enjoy it."

The lights dimmed, and the piece started. A series of handwritten messages flashed against the white background.

"With any luck, by next year…"

"I'll be going out with one of these girls…"

The scene changed for a moment. Instead of showing writing, it showed a several cut-out pictures of models. The audience laughed for a few seconds, before the writing returned.

"But for now, let me say…"

"Without hope or agenda…"

"Just because it's Christmas…"

"(And at Christmas, you tell the truth)…"

"To me, you are perfect…"

"And my wasted heart will love you…"

"Until you look like this…"

The PowerPoint concluded by showing a picture of an old, grey mummy. Like all the other slides, it was shown long enough for everyone to read it and react to it. Afterwards, the screen went black and the lights went up.

The audience applauded enthusiastically. Mark watched them, elated. This was defiantly better than the usual artwork. Mark wondered why he had avoided creating anything for so long.

* * *

On Christmas Eve, Juliet and Peter were first through the door. Although Mark was nervous about how they would react to his show (Juliet in particular), he concealed this. He hugged the happy couple and shook hands with them, but did not look Juliet directly in the eyes.

"Merry Christmas, Mark!" Peter shouted as he greeted him.

"Merry Christmas to you too, Peter", Mark replied, "I Hope you enjoy the show"

"I heard there's only one piece in it," Peter responded, "But I also heard that it's excellent."

"You'll have to see it to find out." Mark stated, before going to set up the show again.

When it ended, Peter and Juliet were particularly enthusiastic in their applause.

* * *

Inspired by the reaction to "A Christmas Goodbye", Mark continued creating art. Some of it was in the form of more PowerPoints, but over time it came to include photographs and even paintings. Eventually, he began working under his own name, taking his art all over the world.

Neither Peter nor Juliet knew who actually created "A Christmas Goodbye". Although Juliet briefly had her suspicions, those faded quickly. Anyway, she and Peter remained happy together, and Mark continued to stay in touch with them, their interactions becoming more open. Though Mark's feelings for Juliet remained, they no longer controlled him, and was able to move on with his own life. Whenever his infatuation for Juliet threatened to become too powerful, or whenever the pressures of daily life became difficult to cope with, Mark would use those feelings constructively, applying them to a new artwork. As the Tour Guide had said about Van Gogh all those years ago, he had transformed the pain of his tormented life into ecstatic beauty.


End file.
